Part of a series related to
Biomineralization
General Mineralized tissues Remineralisation Biocrystallization Biointerface Biofilm
Exoskeletons (shells) Arthropod exoskeleton cuticle Brachiopod shell Cephalopod shell cirrate shell cuttlebone gladius Lorica Choanoflagellate lorica Protist shell coccosphere coccolith diatom frustule foraminifera test testate amoebae Seashell echinoderm stereom mollusc shell nacre chiton shell gastropod shell small shelly fauna scaly-foot snail shell estuary shells Sponge spicule Test
Endoskeletons (bones) Vertebrate skeleton Bone mineral Ossification
Teeth, scales, tusks etc Limpet teeth Otolith otolithic membrane Scale microfossils Tusk
Calcification amorphous calcium carbonate marine biogenic calcification calcareous nannofossils Aragonite oolitic aragonite sand aragonite sea Calcite microbial calcite precipitation calcite sea Great Calcite Belt
Silicification biogenic silica siliceous ooze diatomaceous earth
Other forms Bone bed Kerogen alginite oil shale Phosphate phosphorite Pyrena
Related Mineral evolution In soil mineralization immobilization Ballast minerals Magnetofossil Magnetosome Magnetotactic bacteria Magnetoreception Microfossils engrailed gene Druse Cupriavidus metallidurans Biomineralising polychaetes Mineral nutrients Microbial mat Fossilization permineralization petrifaction Burgess Shale preservation
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Abone bed is anygeologicalstratum ordeposit that containsbones of whatever kind. Inevitably, such deposits aresedimentary in nature. Not a formal term, it tends to be used more to describe especially dense collections such asLagerstätte. It is also applied tobrecciated andstalagmitic deposits on the floor of caves, which frequently contain osseous remains.^[1]

In a more restricted sense, the term is used to describe certain thin layers of bony fragments, which occur in well-defined geological strata. One of the best-known of these is theLudlow Bone Bed, which is found at the base of theDownton Sandstone in theUpper Ludlow series. AtLudlow (England) itself, two such beds are actually known, separated by about 14 ft (4.3 m). of strata. Although quite thin, the Ludlow Bone Bed can be followed from that town intoGloucestershire, for a distance of 45 miles (72 km). It is almost completely made up of fragments ofspines,teeth andscales ofganoid fish. Another well-known bed, formerly known as theBristol orLias Bone Bed, exists in the form of several thin layers ofmicaceoussandstone, with the remains of fish andsaurians, which occur in theRhaetic Black Paper Shales that lie above theKeupermarls, in the south-west of England. A similar bone bed has been traced on the samegeological horizon inBrunswick,Hanover (Germany), inFranconia and inTübingen (Germany).^[2][3] A bone bed has also been observed at the base of theCarboniferouslimestone series, in certain parts of the south-west of England.^[1]

Bone beds are also recorded inNorth America,South America,Mongolia andChina. Terrestrial bonebed examples are: the TriassicMetoposaurus bone bed fromPortugal,^[4] theMapusaurus bone bed atCañadón del Gato, inArgentina,^[5] theAllosaurus-dominatedCleveland-Lloyd Dinosaur Quarry ofUtah,^[6] theDinosaur National Monument on the boundary of Utah andColorado,^[7] anAlbertosaurus bonebed fromAlberta,^[8] aDaspletosaurus bone bed fromMontana, theCenozoicJohn Day Fossil Beds ofOregon,^[9] aTriceratops bonebed from Montana,^[10] aCentrosaurus bonebed in Alberta,^[11] aStyracosaurus bone bed in Alberta,^[12] anEdmontosaurus annectens bone bed inWyoming,^[13] anEdmontosaurus regalis bone bed in Alberta,^[14] aGryposaurus bone bed in theOldman Formation,^[15][16] aPachyrhinosaurus bone bed in theWapiti Formation,^[17] and theNemegt Basin in theGobi Desert region of Mongolia, specifically theSaurolophus bone bed known as the Dragon's Tomb.^[18]Bentiaba,Angola, is an example of a marine bonebed^[19] with numerous mosasaurs and plesiosaurs. Another example of a marine bonebed is the Sharktooth Hill Bonebed located in theTemblor Formation in California.^{[20][21][22][23]}

Fossil bonebeds don't always consist of one single species, but rather many species of organisms. There are several of the bonebeds known throughout North America. Two of the best examples include the Mixson's Bone Bed of Florida, whose geological settings preserved the remains ofAmbelodon,Aepycamelus, andCormohipparion,^[24] and theAgate Fossil Beds inNebraska which has the fossils of abundant creatures such asMenoceras,Stenomylus, andDaphoenodon.^{[25][26][27][28]}

• Fossils

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